NOVEMBER 2019 ISSUE NO. 2
CYBER SECURITY:
WHAT IS THE REAL THREAT? -JACKIE ROBINSON
GET MORE CLIENTS EVENT IF YOU HATE MARKETING Page â– 1
MELISSA AMBERS FOUNDER AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Your Editor-in-Chief works hard to ensure that she brings you informative articles and tools for your continued growth. We want you to be successful in your career and your business. Savvy The Business Magazine was birth through a vision of Melissa Ambers as she worked on an event for a client of Behind The Scene Chic LLC. She has always had innovative ideas that has given any project a jolt. Melissa is recommended to many because of her contemporary way of creating efficient and effective solutions for any business to be successful. Melissa is exceptional at starting conversations that lead up to collaborations and/or partnerships. As a result of her efforts why not bring others together in a unique way. This is how "SAVVY" Magazine is born. Thank you to all of Savvy Magazine Contributors and Supporters. Anyone that has some business advice, tips, or Ads to be placed in the magazine, send email to info@savvymag.biz Check out the website for more Savvy Resources at www.savvymag.biz
Page â– 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS How to Master Your Product Planning with Mindmaps
06
Side Hustle
09
Cyber Security: What is the Real Threat?
10
5 Steps to Move From Employee to Entrepreneur
14
Procrastinate Top 5 Tips To Stay On Track
15
Effectiveness and Clarity in Time Management
17
Simple Ways to Eliminate the Tire Kickers
18
Get More Clients Even If You Hate Marketing
19
Page â– 3
Page â– 4
Page â– 5
HOW TO MASTER
YOUR PRODUCT PLANNING WITH MINDMAPS
Mindmaps have a myriad of uses in business 2. USE QUESTIONS WHEN MIND MAPPING (and even personal) life. Here are twenty-one Don’t just try to think up concepts, ideas, keywords, tips for putting them to work even more. or possible products. For each mind-map element you are brainstorming, ask yourself questions – and don’t be satisfied with one answer: Keep 1. PRACTICE ON PAPER FIRST questioning. If mind-mapping is new to you, practice creating them on paper first before attempting to learn new 3. WARM UP BEFORE MIND MAPPING mind-mapping programs with loads of features. Use tools such as images, photos, and keyword Page ■ 6
lists. View and read all your warm-up materials before starting. Use images that inspire you to represent your brand or have emotional meaning to you. If you are mind-mapping with a team, play short warm-up games such as word association before you write anything down. (Go around in a circle – circles stimulate creativity.)
Using the right format for your mind map is essential to getting the most out of it and communicating with team members or clients most clearly.
Before you start mind-mapping, take the time to identify and clarify your goal or the purpose of that particular mind map. While it’s true you can simply delete irrelevant brainstorming ideas, keeping a goal or purpose in mind will help you generate better-quality ideas, questions, points, et cetera.
11. USE MIND MAPPING WHEN OUTLINING BOOKS OR PRODUCT REVIEWS
9. USE MIND MAPS TO HELP CREATE NEW HABITS
Print out a mind map with the new desired habit as your center field and add reinforcing 4. USE A MASTER MIND MAP pluses or reminders. Print it out and pin it This one can even be on a whiteboard in your where you can see it. office, or on a large sheet of illustration board. Make your center field represent what you/ 10. BUILD MIND MAPPING INTO YOUR DAILY ROUTINE your business is all about, and branch out from there. Add to this mind-map over months or Make mind mapping itself become a daily habit even years. Your Master Mind Map is your by using this powerful organizational and secret stash for new program ideas, article brainstorming tool daily. The more you mind map, the more expert you’ll become. The more expert ideas, title ideas, strategy ideas, and more. you become, the more focused you will be. And the more attentive you are, the more time you’ll save! 5. KNOW YOUR GOAL OR PURPOSE
6. DON’T JUST DELETE
Create a mind map and put the name of the book or product in the center field. Have it open while you read the book or use the product. Then every time you notice a point that seems significant – something you want to mention – add it as a new branch.
If you’re about to ‘cut’ irrelevant ideas that you’ve brainstormed from your mindmap, 12. CREATE BULLET POINTS WITH YOUR MIND don’t! Double check to see if you can reuse any of these unrelated ideas elsewhere, and MAP APP move them to your central Master Mind Map. Use a mind map for brainstorming bullet points when writing sales pages or articles.
7. DON’T GET MARRIED TO ONE TYPE OF MIND MAP
While it’s great to have a favorite tool or method, be sure to try out your mind map in different views and styles. If you’re using a program such as iMindMap, changing the appearance of your map is as easy as clicking a button. Keep in mind that some concepts work better in certain specific views.
8. CONSIDER THE BEST MAP MODEL FOR YOUR NEEDS Not all mind maps have to follow the traditional mind-map format. You can use mind-mapping software to create SWOT analyses, Ishikawa Fishbone diagrams, WBS diagrams and Gantt charts, too. (If you don’t know what these are, you’ll find links to examples in the Resource Directory accompanying these 21 ideas.)
13. USE MIND MAPS TO MAKE SENSE OF WEBINAR NOTES Have you ever wildly jotted down notes while attending a webinar, then found yourself confused later as to what goes with which point? Sorting them out in a mind map can really put them in perspective … literally. (Especially since it’s so easy to move mind map branches and nodes to different spots.)
14. DON’T GET CARRIED AWAY BY PERFECTION Mind maps are meant to capture ideas at the speed of light. Don’t stop to perfect them – just keep going with your brainstorming process. Clean them up later – and only if you’re going to use them for some sort of presentation or permanent record in your SoP.
Page ■ 7
One Note actually has an add-on (Note Gems) that lets you create Mind Maps, so if you’re a If you use mind mapping often, create One Note user, this could be an ideal strategy. templates for processes you repeat (for example, brainstorming a new product or 20. START WITH CATEGORIES setting up a follow-up series). If you are using mind mapping as an 16. USE MIND MAPS FOR DECISION TREE CREATION organizational method, start with your first layer being simple categories. This will help If you use decision trees as part of your business you group your thoughts in order and put them process, then mind-mapping software can be in the right spots right from the beginning. a fast and powerful tool in their creation.
15. CREATE MIND MAPPING TEMPLATES
21. USE PROJECT, PRODUCT OR PROGRAM NEEDS
17. DON’T TRY TOO HARD It’s one thing to be prepared for a mind mapping session with data, keywords, et cetera … but don’t focus too much on getting things “right” as you create your map. You’ll be more likely to come up with really creative and unique ideas if you just let your imagination go and put down everything and anything occurs to you (particularly in your first pass!)
18. DESIGNATE A TEAM MEMBER TO BE YOUR MIND MAPPER
If you’re using mind maps as part of a team exercise or meeting, assign one person to become your mind map expert and create the actual mind map. That way you’ll get refinement and consistency in your team mind mapping. (Make that person responsible for sharing the finished mind map too.)
19. TRY TAKING MEETING NOTES USING MIND MAPS
Another great way to brainstorm with mind maps is to start with your project, product or program needs or ‘must haves’. To zero in on project needs or ‘must haves’, list all the things your product has to: • Be • Do For example, if your product was mascara, for ‘be’, you might use bubble nodes containing words like ‘waterproof’, ‘easy to remove’, and ‘non-irritant’. And if the software you were designing needed to ‘do’ something, your words might be ones like “generate random samples”, “Aggregate from dictionary sources”, and “use correct grammatical order”. Mind mapping is a wonderful tool for so many purposes: Ideas, inspiration, brainstorming, organizing, creating a structure, doing a cost analysis or feasibility study. Get into the habit of using it frequently to unleash your creativity and clarity even more.
Melissa Ambers www.behindthesceneexpert.com melissa@behindthesceneexpert.com
Page ■ 8
TREAT IT LIKE YOU ARE AT WORK.
ARE YOU FINANCIALLY STABLE?
This means that you do not kick your legs up on the Are you rolling in the doe? NOPE! Think about what desk. Act like your boss is going to walk around the you want to do. Is it a need for it. We can be passionate about a lot of things, but that does not mean that we corner in a minute. What do you do? should turn it into a business. Always tap into your God-given talents. PARTY, WHAT PARTY? Whatever you decide to do, don’t do it alone. I am not saying that you have to get a partner or investor. FREE TIME, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? What I am saying you want to have a mentor, someone There is not a time clock. You do not punch in or out. to bounce ideas off of, and someone that will reel you Yea, you got a call to come & hang. Not tonight!! It’s back in when needed. You do not want a “Yes Man/ time to start declining a lot of invites because you Woman” in your corner. You will be setting yourself up for failure. This is not what you want, and I don’t want have work to do. The hustle will not work itself. that for you. Stay away from cute things, or that’s different. Cute WHAT’S THE HURRY? TAKE YOUR TIME. & different will not pay any bills. Do your research, Just because you have a hustle and you get a few and don’t be so quick to say, “I have a business. I am an people to purchase does not mean you are the bomb. Entrepreneur”. #keepitsavvy This is the time to work harder and to stay in front of people, so they know who you are. As you know, when Humble you sometimes run you fall and scrape your knee. Utilize When this happens, it may take some time to recover. Solutions Treat your hustle the same way. Be careful and try not Time management to fall & not get back up. Listen Negotiate
Page ■ 9
CYBER SECURITY:
WHAT IS THE REAL THREAT? Jackie Robinson, or Jackie R, can count the many awards and accomplishments over the course of her career. She has been recognized by governors, mayors, and her peers for the work she has done and her contributions to the community. Now in her senior years it’s her mission as a “sage and maven” to share her 30+ years of experience doing what she loves: teaching others about the Internet, mobile devices, and digital marketing. Listen and hear her speak valuable information you need for the protection of yourself and your familiy. In today’s world, children, young women and men, boys and girls can easily be snatched from their family and friends because of too much information on the internet. Security breaches, data breaches, hacking, swhishing and fishing, malware, spyware, viruses, hoax all with the goal to get you to give up information, or to steal information you have posted online.
So lets get right to: Being online can take up a lot of free time, whether you’re a parent or a child. It’s easy to get caught up in playing online games, watching YouTube videos, and chatting with friends. But remember, there is a world outside of the Internet, so try to balance your child’s time between the two accordingly. Only allow your child to access to the Internet (with the exception of doing homework) for a set, limited time each day.
Social Media, What is the right age? If your child wants to join a social media site, choose sites that are appropriate for their age. Many social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have an age minimum of 13 years old. It’s a good idea to have access to your child’s account credentials so you can supervise what they’re doing,
Page ■ 10
■■ such as adding new friends, ■■ receiving suspicious messages, or ■■ posting questionable content. This can be tricky because kids now a days demand privacy. You have to have a strong, trusting relationship to get them to understand safety. It’s also a good idea to look for kid-friendly social media sites for your kids to focus on, or simply inform them they’ll have to wait until they’re older to join such platforms.
Monitoring your kids’ online activity. The computer should be in a common area of your home. That way, you can keep an eye on your child, removing the temptation to visit websites or perform activities they are not allowed to do normally. Another way to add an extra layer of safety, since parents don’t have eyes in the back of their heads, is to upgrade to a security like a Security account, which will give you insights into your child’s mobile device activities as well. It will even: ■■ allow you to choose which apps your children can use — ■■ and the ability to turn off access to Facebook or YouTube. ■■ Remember to keep all security software updated to ensure optimal protection.
Other helpful tips: ■■ Periodically review your children’s list of instant messenger buddies, and your’s too! ■■ Read Security News in the Feed. Emphasize that computer privileges will not be taken away in the event of cyberbullying, which is one reason why children don’t alert their parents that they’re being bullied. IMPORTANT: Encourage regular password changes and teach your kids not to share passwords, not even with friends. A Guide For Kids: Do not give personal information to strangers online. Personal information is anything about you. Your ■■ full name, ■■ where you live, ■■ your school’s name, ■■ your parent’s names, ■■ your home address, and phone number. These pieces of information can help a stranger on the Internet find you, so be very careful about whom
you give this information to. Do not give it to anyone you have not met in real life. If you share any of this information on social media sites, be sure to check the privacy settings on the site to make sure none of it is viewable by the public.
Make online accounts safe and use strong passwords. Free printable kid’s passwords form ...getbuttonedup.com A strong password is a password that is no less than eight characters, and should not include words that can be found in a dictionary, as that makes it easier for hackers using computer programs to guess your password. They should contain a mixture of numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and special characters. Don’t reuse the same password on every site you visit. ■■ When creating an account to join a website, be sure to create a username that protects your personal information. ■■ Don’t use your full name as the username, as that is part of personal information that strangers can use to find out more about you by doing a simple Internet search.
These are the don’ts of safe passwords: ■■ Avoid using too obvious passwords such as names of your beloved family members, your birth place, favorite movie, your teenage crush and so on ■■ Don’t use passwords consisting of just a single word that you’d find in the dictionary ■■ Don’t store any passwords in plain text on your computer on in your email inbox, just in case a hacker gets access to them ■■ Don’t use the same password for all your online accounts – that way you minimize your risk in case there’s a breach
These are the do’s of safe passwords: ■■ Use long passwords: the longer they are, the longer they take to crack ■■ Use a mix of upper and lower case letters ■■ Mix in numbers in your password ■■ Use special characters such as !, @, #, $ and & ■■ Use a different password for each of your important accounts ■■ Use a trusted and secure password manager to remember your credentials ■■ Don’t share your password
Page ■ 11
Social Media Netiquette. What you post online will stay there forever, even if you delete it. Colleges and future potential employers will check out social media profiles of applicants, so make sure that what you post online is appropriate, and check your security settings to be sure that everything you post can only be seen by your friends.
What is the one thing you should not post when you are upset? ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■
Scathing Email Message With Poor Grammar And Misspellings Dear John I Quit Nasty Rebuttals Racist And Homophobic Comments
CATFISHING (THAT’S NOT YOU)
feel uncomfortable, you should notify a parent or teacher as soon as possible. And remember, if you don’t know the person, do not “friend” him or her.
App Security 101 Just because an app is available for download doesn’t mean that it is a safe app. It’s best to download apps from known and trusted online stores like Google Play or the Apple App Store, which test the apps to make sure they’re safe to use. Scammers are constantly trying to trick people into downloading apps that look just like a real app in order to try to get the data that is on your phone. You can check if an app is real by reading the comments on the download page. If you still can’t tell, ask an adult to help you choose the right app before downloading it.
Other helpful tips include: ■■ Joining clubs or entering contests only after you’ve obtained your parents’ approval.
■■ Remembering that if it sounds too good to be Beware of “catfishing.” Catfishing is when a person true, it is. sets up a profile and pretends to be someone they’re not. You may think you’re talking to a kid ■■ Never reply to “friends” on social media asking for money or clicking on suspicious links they your age, but it could be an adult pretending to be send. Once again, if you don’t know the person, a child behind your computer screen. Use caution do not accept their friend request. when someone you don’t know approaches you on social media, and if something about it makes you For more information about JackieR: Jackie Robinson JackieR | Hot and Mobile ~ Technology for Out and About jackier@hotandmobile.com www.hotandmobile.com Available for Speaking Engagements Join the Mailing List for Upcoming Podcasts and Online Workshop!
Page ■ 12
Page â– 13
5 STEPS TO MOVE FROM EMPLOYEE TO ENTREPRENEUR By Linda Cattelan
Have you been considering quitting your day job in favor of starting a business? Have you just lost your job and are currently exploring alternative ways of earning a living? Have you always dreamt of owning your own business some day?
Before you take the leap of faith into self-employment, consider these 5 steps: Get clear on your goals/passions It's not enough to decide to become a business owner. There are several questions and things to consider before you move forward in becoming a business owner. You will need to think about what kind of business you wish to run. You`ll need to determine if you wish to grow it from scratch, buy an existing business or purchase an available franchise. But even before you decide that- you should think about how the business will fit in with the rest of your life. Running a business can be a huge commitment of time and money. So ask yourself what do you enjoy doing or what will bring you joy? You will spend much of your day on your business so it's a good idea for the business to provide work you actually enjoy doing. Ask yourself what you are most passionate about? What would you love to do? What is your dream job/business? Do your research/homework - Don't make any rash or impulsive decisions and don't leave your day job until you are absolutely sure of what you want to do and have a plan for doing it. Take the time to do good research by researching the industry, the marketplace, your potential target clients, your competitors. Do proper business research including a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis. Get a good handle on projected revenues and realistic operating costs as well as an understanding on how long it will take to breakeven and generate more revenues than expenses. Identify your personal strengths and skills and determine if there are any skills gaps. Determine how you will close any skill gaps or lack of expertise. Which gaps can be closed through skills training? Which gaps can be closed through recruiting the right people? Which gaps can be closed through coaching or mentoring? Determine
what options and opportunities are available to you right now? Learn from others' mistakes - There is no shortage of people who have started or run a business. Speak to as many people as you can who have gone before you. Learn what you can about what works, what doesn't, and what mistakes others have made. Don't waste valuable time and money. Be open to hearing others` perspectives on what they would have done differently. Hindsight is always 20/20. Business Plan ahead - Do the work and develop a business plan. While it may be a lot of work, it will be time well spent and most financial institutions will require one if you are searching for financing. The process of business planning is not only to prove to the bank that your business will be a success, it's also a roadmap for you to follow to ensure success. Running your business finances can be like running your weekly, monthly or yearly personal budget - so if you haven't developed good budgeting and financial management skills, it might be particularly challenging and doubly important to have a solid business plan. Hire a mentor - Starting and running a business can be challenging or even lonely at times. In addition to the day to day operations of the business, you may be mentally or emotionally overwhelmed by being a business owner. Having a safe place to go to for advice, guidance, and accountability or simply as a sounding board can be just what you need to help you make the transition into entrepreurship easier and smoother. Good coaching and mentoring can really help you fast track your transition. While there are many advantages to being an entrepreneur, it`s important for you to also consider the downside of self-employment. Become a business owner armed with as much information, skills and tools you can to ensure a successful transition from employee to entrepreneur. Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Linda_ Cattelan/538795
Page â– 14
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10113273
Page â– 15
Page â– 16
EFFECTIVENESS AND CLARITY IN TIME MANAGEMENT
When you are trying to get your life and priorities under control there is no better way to go about it than time management. Managing your time allows you to complete tasks, organize your life and feel accomplished. In order to feel accomplished and actually get something done, you probably want to schedule items in order to be able to mark them off as done, see where you are going or where you need to be. First of all you need an action plan. What is it that you want to do with your time? An action plan allows you to see where you need to take action in your life. Is it more personal items you need to accomplish? What about work? Family? What are your priorities and
what type of action plan do online software or whatever you need to devise? it is you use to manage your time. Do you have meetings, What are your priorities for sports with the kids, date night everything in your life? List with the spouse, walking the what is most important to you. dog, running, jogging, walking? Is it your kids? Your job? Your Schedule it all in. spouse? Your family? Is it all of these things? If you want to Allow enough time so that feel accomplished and spend nothing gets left out. There quality time on each of these is nothing that says you have categories you probably want to do all of these activities to manage your time so that each day or week. Schedule nothing gets omitted or left some things for this week and behind. others for next week. Stagger tasks so that you don’t feel What are your goals for overwhelmed by having to fit spending time on each of these everything in one week. categories? Sit down and make a list with column headings for You are the master of your each one. List all the things you time. Let time work for you want to accomplish for each of and not the other way around. these and how much time you You don’t want your life so want to spend. consumed that you don’t have time to stop and smell the Pull out your calendar, diary, roses. Page ■ 17
SIMPLE WAYS TO ELIMINATE THE TIRE KICKERS In any business, you’ll spend a certain amount of time on clients who will never pay you. Website designers quote jobs that never come to fruition. Car dealers spend hours chatting up customers who will never buy. Book agents read countless manuscripts they will never
be able to sell. And coaches spend time giving out free advice to clients who cannot or will not hire them. Truthfully, it can be frustrating, and it’s definitely a drain on your time and energy. But there are some things you can do to eliminate those who will never become clients without having to spend time with them first.
Post Your Prices One of the most hotly debated topics among coaches and service providers is whether or not you should post your prices on your website. There are pros and cons on both sides of the fence, but the biggest advantage to posting your prices is that it immediately eliminates those who cannot afford you. Of course, you don’t have to list prices for everything
to achieve the same effect. If you offer private coaching and self-directed training packages, having a price tag of $1000 on your “entry level” course makes it pretty clear that your private coaching is going to be at the high end. If you prefer to quote packages individually, a line that states, “Coaching packages start at $XXX” is a simple way to state your prices while still giving you some flexibility.
Intake Forms Before you get on the phone with anyone, require that they do a little groundwork first. A client intake form should tell you everything you need to know about a potential client long before you pick up the phone. But what it tells you the most is how much work they’re willing to do. Freebie seekers aren’t likely to do the work required to answer even a simple questionnaire, so
those who do fill out your form are better prospects. Not only that, but you can include in your form a question about pricing, such as “What’s your budget for coaching?” Use a pre-defined list of answers that start with “$1,000 and up” rather than letting your potential client fill in her own amount, and those with smaller budgets won’t bother to complete it.
Change Your Language Words have power, and if the words you use on your website and other marketing material are speaking to newbies or those just getting started in business, you’ll never attract the audience you’re seeking. Instead of using words like “step by step plan,” say, “advanced techniques.” Rather than talking about “easy systems,” mention highend, complex software by name. Simple changes can help
you to automatically attract the right audience. You’ll still spend some time and energy on those who ultimately won’t hire you, but by making these simple edits to your website, marketing materials, and other business systems, you’ll begin to see more high-end clients and fewer of those you no longer wish to work with.
Page ■ 18
GET MORE CLIENTS EVEN IF YOU HATE MARKETING
It’s not always easy to tell where to begin when it comes to marketing, especially when some people seem to be complete naturals. Whenever they try to bring in new customers is a wild success while others struggle with the concept of it all. If you’re one of the people who struggles with marketing, have no fear. Instead of dwelling that your business isn’t growing as fast as a competitor’s, take a deep breath, remember why you started your business in the first place, and move forward with implementing a great marketing plan. The good news is that many of your marketing efforts do not need to look or feel like marketing. In fact, the most effective marketing techniques involve no attempts to bully your followers into buying one more product. Instead, they appear to be more about you helping your audience by showing them the way certain strategies have helped you find success in your own struggles. The ideas below are designed to help you market more seamlessly to your audience in a manner that often doesn’t look or feel like you’re marketing. Try these on for size and see what a difference they make.
1. Give Away Something Valuable
offering as freebies to get people on board for buying their products. While PLR can be a great starting point, you want to offer something innovative and radically different that will light a fire in your audience to not only buy your product, but also to act on the information and education your product or service delivers. Why does this matter? If your audience is excited about the products they buy from you and the lessons these products hold, they are more likely to do your marketing for you by telling others about your product, and your freebie, and why they should buy your products to make differences in their lives. One of the greatest gifts you can give yourself as a marketer, especially one who doesn’t love the idea of marketing, is the gift of other people doing the heavy lifting on your behalf. Whether your goal is about getting an email address for your newsletter, selling a product, or merely making a friend, the quality of your freebie matters. When you give valuable things for free, people are more interested to see the value inside the items you sell.
2. Reach Out through Other Mediums
You don’t want to give your audience the same recycled PLR content others in your industry are You can’t deny that social networking is big for Page ■ 19
businesses today. Big brands as well as small businesses can benefit from reaching out to their followers daily to offer their expertise. However, when most marketers strictly stick with one or two social networks, ignoring so many others in their marketing efforts, it leaves a field wide open for you to jump into and corner the market – whatever market you happen to be in. Don’t make the mistake of allowing the bulk of your branding and marketing efforts to languish in one or two social networks. Instead, be BOLD! Go out there and hit the other social networks that get less love from marketers. This includes networks like: Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Snapchat Reach out to your audience on these networks, not only with special offers, but also specialized content that is designed to help them build themselves up, build their businesses, and forge a deeper relationship with you as a person and not merely as someone who sells them stuff.
3. Network with Your Local Market While the internet certainly opens up the world to getting new clients, don’t forget about the locals in your community who could also use your services. Start by connecting with locals on social media and getting involved in groups dedicated to your local community. Branch out from there by setting up your own meet-and-greet at a local coffee house. Rent out a local meeting room to present information about your industry in general and then finish with a special offer for your business. This setting also provides a meet-and-greet and if you record the live version, you can use that audio and slides to produce an on-demand webinar. Eventually build up to joining the Chamber of Commerce and going to live networking events.
posts, or create a podcast. If you don’t have the need for a full video program, hire a video editor or VA to do the conversions for you. Even if you post the original video on your website, you can still create a new blog post with the audio version. Add a short blog post or audio summary and you’ll see how one short video turned into 3 pieces of content (1 video, 1 audio, 1 written summary/blog post).
5. Collect Testimonials from Happy Clients When was the last time you bought a product without looking at customer reviews? These product reviews and client testimonials provide proof to other prospects that you know your stuff and you help your clients. And if you work with any big names, their testimonials can speak volumes in terms of attracting new clients to your tribe. If you’re not used to asking for testimonials, get started now and put this process into your business manual. Asking is the easy part; following up with clients to collect the testimonials is what can be a bit time consuming. But if you never ask, you’ll never hear the glowing praise they’re giving you. Testimonials can be used throughout your website, specifically on your product/services page, plus you can use them on any sales page you create. You can even post them on social media. And if you have a large collection, choose different ones to use on your different sales pages instead of repeating the same ones.
6. Interview Experts in Your Industry
While showcasing your own expertise is certainly important, you will also gain expert credibility by interviewing other experts in your industry. They can be other coaches who specialize in a different niche or other solopreneurs who focus on business results as opposed to coaching one-on-one. Finding these experts and connecting with them shows your target market that you truly care about what they need. Plus they will be impressed that you do these interviews because not everyone is comfortable being interviewed or being in the spotlight. One other benefit is getting your name in front Even though video is a powerful medium which of your guest’s audience. These are marketing keeps gaining momentum in terms of SEO, not opportunities for both you and your interview everyone likes sitting and watching videos. To subject so you may find a client or two simply from capture those who prefer to skim a blog post or conducting interviews and expanding your reach. listen to a podcast, convert your videos into audio snippets. Camtasia is a video production software which can convert your files into audio-only mp3 files, suitable One form of content that often gets overlooked is to send to your email subscribers, embed on blog infographics. This idea may be intimidating for those
4. Turn Your Videos into Audio Classes or Podcast Episodes
7. Create Infographics
Page ■ 20
who are graphically-challenged but the idea is actually very simple: Gather pertinent information and stats about any topic and design a graphic that can be shared over social media. Infographics are another form of free content used to attract people to your business and into your funnel but it’s the best way to share statistics with your audience. How many times have you tried reading a blog post with tons of numbers only to find your mind drifting away? Putting those stats into a visual graphic makes it much easier to read and keep people’s attention. Choose one of your market’s pain points. Find related stats that will help them see there’s a way to solve their problem. Organize the info, put your logo on it, and pin it to Pinterest, your blog, and other social media platforms.
8. Start a Meaningful Conversation on Social Media Social media doesn’t mean always promoting your products. Sometimes, being the one to start a meaningful conversation that invites thoughtful discourse and, even on occasion, debate, can be a huge boon for your business. The more people who become involved in a civil discussion, the more everyone can learn in the process. When you’re the defacto leader of that conversation, it affords you a wide amount of social media attention, and subsequent sales for your products and services. Just remember to actively participate in and follow up with comments in the conversation and encourage everyone to maintain a civil tone throughout – wherever the conversation leads.
9. Become a Relationship Magnet Never let an opportunity to build a relationship with a member of your audience go to waste. The last thing you want to learn is that you missed an opportunity because you were more focused on making sales than on building a relationship. Welcome new members into the fold and seek ways to engage them so that you can build those meaningful relationships that almost always, eventually, become paying clients for you. Create a closed Facebook Group to allow for easier interaction. Not only do you as the group owner benefit but so do your other members. They now have the opportunity to build relationships with other likeminded people in your group. Most people are simply looking for an opportunity to connect with someone else in a meaningful way. Giving your audience that opportunity can create a much more meaningful engagement and relationship than you may have at first imagined.
10. Ask Your Audience a Question You’ll never believe the mayhem that can occur by posing a single question. Nor can you imagine the conversations started, problems solved, and friendships formed by doing the same. We live in a world of relationship marketing where people are eager to make connections, even with others who may live so far away. Many of them only want an opportunity to be heard. Offer that forum by asking a question and listening to the response. You never know what amazing discoveries await on the other side of a question and what they can mean for the course of your business.
11. Establish Yourself as a Thought Leader There are many things you can do to position yourself as a thought leader in your field. From writing LinkedIn articles, creating your own blog, and even writing books on the topic to more subtle tasks, like starting a podcast, writing letters to the editor for your local newspaper, and granting interviews in your area of expertise. Each of these things positions you as a thought leader in your industry. Promoting these things through your own social media channels solidifies this positioning, allowing you even greater clout to people outside your industry or those who are working their way up within it.
12. Create a Podcast Podcasts are amazing tools for promoting the work you do as well as showcasing the works of others. In the course of conducting your podcast, you have the opportunity to interview others you admire, even those that are far outside of the industry in which you work. Podcasts present a forum for you to share your own insights, products, and thoughts with an audience who tunes in week after week to hear the message you share. Whether your podcast appeals to people who are only interested in a single industry or offers broader appeal, the more frequently you present your show, the greater your reach will become as it includes not only people who are tuning in to hear what you have to say, but also those who follow the person you’re interviewing as well. Anyone who listens has the opportunity to learn about products you have to offer while also learning important insights about business, life, finding balance, and so much more.
Page ■ 21
13. Promote the Works and Words of Others You Admire
16. Expand Your Book Writing into Workbooks and Planners
Hosting a podcast of your own and interviewing people you admire episode after episode is one way to do this. So is creating joint venture products with someone you admire and conducting webinars together. The truth of the matter is that you only need to make a simple mention of some of the reasons you admire another person to promote them to your audience. However, taking the time to explain why you admire that person and promoting their products and services can help you build greater credibility in your own circle. This marketing tactic can also present unique opportunities to earn money from the sales of that person’s products through affiliate marketing. While it is important to be authentic when promoting another person’s works and words, there’s no harm in earning a commission for promoting those products.
We know how publishing a book can increase your authority among your target market; but a full book isn’t the only way to self-publish. Have you ever searched for workbooks and planners on Amazon? These low-content books sell like hotcakes and are fairly easy to produce. Planners and workbooks can be stand-alone products or they can be added components of your signature class. Plan a contest to give away one of your planners and to build buzz. Create a series of workbooks, each touching on a different pain point for your audience. Creating a new product gives you an opportunity to create buzz about your business and to win over new clients in the process.
14. Choose the Items You Market Carefully One of the biggest cautionary tales about promoting products and services on the web is to choose wisely when doing so. Relationships are hard to build, sometimes taking years, if not decades. It only takes promoting one bad product, though, to tear down so much of what you’ve worked so hard to create. While there is no way to be absolutely certain that every product you promote will lay the golden egg; there are steps you can take to avoid promoting products that could come back to bite you in the backside. Vet the products and the product creators well before promoting their products. If possible, get a hands-on feel for the product itself before you promote it so that you know exactly what it says or how it works. Finally, if you get a bad feeling about a product or its owner, pass on the promotion of it.
15. Know Your Goals – Define them Fully The better you understand what your goals are, the better you can tailor your marketing efforts to accomplish those goals. When setting goals be specific. Use real numbers. But, be realistic, too. Once you have a goal in mind, pursue it with singleminded purpose allowing no room for failure in the process. Also remember your why: WHY did you start your business? What did you hope to accomplish? Going back to the beginning can help you find new motivation to embrace marketing.
17. Solve a Problem for Your Audience Solving problems is what you do. It may not always seem like it, but at the center of it all, this is what your role is. In order to do this for your greater audience, though, the first thing you have to do is understand your audience. A few years ago, a young entrepreneur had found the perfect product to promote. He was so excited. He dug in and created a beautiful website, a powerful landing page and sales funnel, and countless articles, blog posts, etc. about the product he was promoting to help children stop wetting their beds. He couldn’t understand why his product wasn’t selling like hotcakes. He had no idea what he was missing. What his audience was hungry to hear. Within minutes of him posting his perplexities on a forum for marketers six women had chimed in with a single word. Laundry. Children wetting beds created mountains of frustrating laundry for women in the middle of the night. That was the pain point. That was the emotional trigger that would sell his products. Promise to eliminate the unnecessary LAUNDRY. Guess what? It worked. By making a few tweaks to address the pain point of laundry for his efforts, the payout was successful beyond even his initial hopes and expectations. He promoted a product that solved a very real problem for his audience, and he was awarded because he took the time to understand his audience better.
Page ■ 22
18. Add Value at Every Turn Another way to make more sales and get more clients even when you hate marketing is to stop thinking like a marketer and start thinking like someone who simply wants to help others. That means you need to add value at every possible turn. Create blog posts that offer exceptional added value to readers free of charge. Create paid products that expands upon this free information and builds into new product ideas for the future. When you give products and services away, give your best and not leftovers that are outdated and largely irrelevant. Add value in your social media posts, freebie products, and blog posts and watch how many times those gifts are returned to you.
19. Be a Voice People Want to Hear
remember, the fortune is almost always in the follow up. It is rarely the first approach or “touch” that convinces people to buy your products or become your clients. Instead, it is the result of consistent effort on your part. Without the follow up, most sales would never happen. Keep touching back with your audience through blog posts, social media messages, new product offerings, and consistent delivery of email newsletters. You just might be delighted at what relationships bloom in the aftermath. Getting new clients through traditional marketing mediums might sound about as exciting to you as going to your dentist for a root canal without medication. However, when you use these ideas to get more clients, even if you hate marketing, you might find that you’re too busy counting your new clients and subsequent sales to worry about the original discomfort.
In a world where there is constant discord, it is refreshing to hear a voice of perpetual positivity. Be that voice. It may take practice. Some people will find the words don’t feel natural or roll off the tongue with quite the same ease as sarcastic or negative comments do. However, making the effort to be the positive voice ringing in the ears of so many on the World Wide Web can pay off in much larger ways than you can imagine. Perhaps not at first, but eventually your continued effort to be a voice people want to hear will be recognized and rewarded.
20. Always Remember: The Fortune is in the Follow Up Whether you love or hate marketing from the beginning, there is one constant you must always
Page ■ 23
www.behindthesceneexpert.com melissa@behindthesceneexpert.com
Page â– 24